Together with the Core 2 Extreme QX6700 quad-core processor we also received a slightly slower, non-extreme Kentsfield model aka Core 2 Quad Q6600. This processor hasn’t been officially announced yet, it should come out in the beginning of next year.

Core 2 Quad Q6600 differs from Core 2 Extreme QX6700 by lower clock speed and lower price point that is expected to be around $850, according to some preliminary data.

The specifications of Core 2 Quad Q6600 are given in the table below:

And here is what the CPU-Z utility reports:

Note that the “non-extreme” Kentsfield processor will also boast slightly lower typical heat dissipation than the top-of-the-line Core 2 Extreme QX6700. Therefore, if you do not want to face the same issues as with NetBurst based CPUs, Core 2 Quad Q6600 may be a better choice for you.

Testbed and Methods

Well, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to dig deeper into the theory about the new quad-core processors. We have already discussed Core microarchitecture in our numerous articles devoted to Kentsfield’s “halves”. As for the peculiarities of quad-core CPUs, we have also dwelled on them in our IDF Fall 2006 Coverage. So, let’s move to the most exciting part of our review: the practical test session.

When we worked with Core 2 Extreme QX6700 and Core 2 Quad Q6600 we decided to test their performance not only in multi-threaded applications. Since multi-core processors allow running a few resource-hungry applications simultaneously, we felt it would be interesting to check out situations like that, too. But let’s start from the very beginning here. Before we start, please take a look at the configuration of the systems that were assembled for our tests:

• CPUs:
  • AMD Athlon 64 FX-62 (Socket AM2, 2.8GHz, 2x1024KB L2);
  • Intel Core 2 Extreme X6800 (LGA775, 2.93GHz, 1067MHz FSB, 4MB L2);
  • Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 (LGA775, 2.66GHz, 1067MHz FSB, 2x4MB L2);
  • Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 (LGA775, 2.66GHz, 1067MHz FSB, 4MB L2);
  • Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 (LGA775, 2.4GHz, 1067MHz FSB, 2x4MB L2).
• Mainboards:
  • ASUS P5B Deluxe (LGA775, Intel P965 Express);
  • ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe (Socket AM2, NVIDIA nForce 590 SLI).
• Memory:
  • 2048MB DDR2-800 SDRAM (Mushkin XP2-6400PRO, 2 x 1024 MB, DDR2-800, 4-4-4-12).
• Graphics card: PowerColor X1900 XTX 512MB;
• HDD: Western Digital WD1500AHFD.
• OS: Microsoft Windows XP SP2 с DirectX 9.0c.

The mainboard BIOS was set for maximum performance.